Abrasive cleaning system



March 29, 1 949. G. D. DILL 2,455,360

, ABRASIVE CLEANING SYSTEM Filed Dec; 29, 1945 Q 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INQQN TOR Gmaavfl 0/44 BY m pm w: m

ATTORNEYS March 29, 1949. G. D. .DILL 2,465,360

ABRAS IVE CLEANING SYSTEM March 29, 1919. I .G. D. DILL 2,465,360

ABRASIVE CLEANING SYSTEM Filed De. 29, 1945 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVE 'R' Ghee/v0.0a;

ATTORNEY$ March 29, 1949.

ABRASIVE CLEANING SYSTEM Filed Dec. 29, 1945 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 'IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII INVENTOR GIL 55/77. 0/44- BY WWM-- ATTORNEYS v Patented Mar. 29, 1949 5 UNITED V STATES PATENT OFFICE ABRASIVE CLEANING SYSTEM Gilbert D. Dill, South Bend, Ind., assignor to American Wheelabi-ator & Equipment Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Application December 29, 1945, Serial No. 637,923

6 Claims (Cl. 51-9) wheels with respect to the skelp strip; to pro-' vide a roomy cabinet which is subject to decreased blasting. intensity and which gives additional room for workmen to inspect and repair equipment; to provide an improved lining for the cabinet; to protect the blasting units from fiying abrasive; to seal the removable units with respect to the cabinet; to provide an improved guide path for the work strip through the machine; to provide for handling different widths of strip; to insure removal of abrasive from the skelp before leaving the machine; to provide equalization between the several abrasive circulatory systems in case one system becomes over-supplied at the expense of another; to clean skelp more efliciently.

According to a preferred form of the invention, the cleaning machine comprises a large roomy cabinet having a removable clapboard lin ing on longitudinal side walls, end walls and roof;

The clapboard lining may comprise removable plates suitably hung in position so that they may be easily removed and replaced. A suitable 1ongitudinal rail or skid connects the entrance and exit of the cabinet over which the skelp slides.-

Adjustable manganese steel side guides are provided to laterally guide the skelp strip through' the machine. The blasting units are located under the skelp strip and may be" arranged in pairs for cleaning opposite margins on-the under surface of the skelp strip. Each unit may comprise a platform or car on which the blasting wheel is journaled and a motor located for driving the blast wheel. A protecting shroud sur-- ering the spent abrasive, cleaning and sizing it and returning it to position for feeding the blast wheels. Equalizer pipes may connect the storage hoppers of the several systems with thereceiving hoppers to equalize disposition of the abrasive. The invention also consists in certain new and original features and combinations hereinafter set forth and claimed.

Although the novel features which are believed to be characteristic of this invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto, the invention itself, as to its objects and advantages, and the manner in which it may be carried out, may be better understood by referring to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, in which:

Fig. 1 represents diagrammatically a bottom View of a section of skelp going through the machine made up of four Wheelabrator units, the supports and guides for the skelp strip, and showing the margins cleaned by the wheels, said margins being indicated by stippling;

Fig. 2 is a general longitudinal elevation of the whole machine;

. Fig. 3 is a detail section taken along a plane parallel to Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a transverse section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3, illustrating the construction of the Wheelabrator car and its shroud having sealing relation with the cabinet to prevent ingress of air and egress of grit;

Fig. 5 is a detail showing the roof clapboard plates and manner of hanging; and

Fig. 6 is a detail showing side clapboard plates and manner of hanging.

In the following description and in the claims, various details will be identified by specific names for convenience, but they are intended to be as generic in their application as the art will permit.

Like reference characters denote like parts in the several figures of the drawings.

In the drawings accompanying and forming part of this specification, certain specific disclosure of the invention is made for purposes of explanation, but it will be understood that the details may be modified in various respects without departure from the broad aspect of the invention.

The machine according to the invention cleans a band I I (Fig. 1) on both margins of the underside of a strip or sheet Ill of skelp used for making welded pipe. It is necessary to clean only one surface of the strip, and only the margins thereof, for the welding operation. When the strip is bent to form the pipe, the electrodes engage the cleaned margins to butt-weld the seam. The edges of the strip are already clean from a prior cutting operation.

transverse to the direction of strip travel and" from opposite sides of the machine, as indicated by arrows A, B, C and D. The blast units are arranged in pairs, each pair cleaning the opposite margins, and the units are=removable in direc tions opposite the margin which the particular unit cleans.

desired to pass the strip through the machine, the higher the speed, themore pairs.

The installation in the form shown comprises in general (Fig. 2) a cabinet l2 having a roof 20, side walls 2! and 22, anentrance end wall 23, an exit end wall 24, and a grating floor 26"- leading to two hoppers 21 and 28. Four cleaning units are shown, two of the units and i6 being removable through one sidewall 2'! of the ma-'- chine and two of the units I 5and i! being removable through the other side 22 of the machine. The side walls haveservice doors 29,

and 36, 31, one opposite each blast unit and on the side opposite from which the unit is removable.

The cabinet I 2 and hoppers 2'1, 28 are of knockdown welded construction-to'insure ease ofhan- :2"

dling in shipping and erection; They may be fabricated of steel plate of one-half inch in thickness, and have heavystructural steel reinforcing members where needed; The cabinet is very roomy to decrease intensityof rebounding blast on walls and is entirely lined with thick steel wearing plates forming a clapboard lining indicated generally by 25.

The entrance and exit points are sealed by'rubber curtains 32 and 33-to seal the entrance and exit openings against escape of dust and abrasive. A vestibule l8-ls provided at theexit end of the machine for the purpose of insuring a.

clean sheet or strip forfurther processingand to prevent loss of abrasive, Withinthe vestibule. F

are special fiat air-blast spray nozzles 39' so arranged that both sides of the skelp stock are" thoroughly cleaned of loose: abrasive. These spray nozzles are supplied by a motor-driven;- high pressure centrifugal blower.38. i The work. I0 is propelled through the machine'by external.

means, as for example, by pinch'rolls 34; 35 at the entrance and exit ends of the machine as indi-..

cated.

The path for guiding and supporting'the skelp.

strip 10 through the machine comprises acontinuously extending steel skid .orrail 40 whose up-.: per surface is at substantially'the same level as; the lower walls 4| of the side guides 3|; A series" of vertical columns 42 having brackets 43 sup-s port-both the central'skid 40 and the cross bars M on which the cast manganese steel side guides; 3| rest. A series of bolts 45 passingtthrough suitably positioned holes in'the cross bars 44 are provided to adjust the sideguides on the cross bars cc to handle. different'widths of skelp.

The clapboard lining..25 covers roof, ends and; sides and has suitable'openings for the passage of the skelp-strip, for doorslblast units, cross bars. and other members passing to or :through ;:the-.

The number :otpairs of cleaning: .7 units is determined by the speed at which it is.

s LE outer walls of the cabinet. The clapboard lining comprises removable Wear plates arranged in overlapping or clapboard fashion, which are held in place by hook constructions on the back side protected from the blast and eliminating bolts. This permits a wear plate to be removed and replaced simply by a workman going in, lifting of! the'oldplate and hangingoma new one. The wear platesmay weigh from eighty to one hundred pounds and be of one inch thick steel,

The roof plates, indicated in general by 46 in Fig.5, have hooks 41 welded along one margin of the plate. These hooks are hung on depending brackets-48 'welded to the roof wall of the cabinet. It will be noted that the hooks 41 are located near'one edge of the plate and the other end of the .linerplate rests upon the adjoining margin 49 of the next plate forming a lap joint at'this point.

The assembly of side plates is indicated in Fig. 6, each side plate being indicated by 50. The side plateshave angle clips 5| welded thereto engaging over angles=52 welded to the side walls: 2|; 22' or end walls 23', 242of the cabinet. The wall angles 52 'have:openings-53 in the bottom thereof for reasons discussedhereinafteru The. upper edges of the sidelplatesill may. form sup ports for adjacentroot plates "46-, if desired, .as; indicated. 1

In both roof plates and side and end wall plates; the adjolning'liner plates in eachrow have butt joints; it is only the platesofadjoining rows that; have'lap joints; thus being similar to ordinary. outdoor house roof'shingles. In'the verticallorl upstanding walls .thel butt. joints thus extend vertically andthe lap joints extend in line .horizontally.

It has beenfound that the clapboard construction withstands the 'actionof the abrasive better: than horizontal butt joints which havea tend-.. ency to permit the abrasive to wear grooves: therein at the joints. Theopenings 53 in the side'angles .52 permit thedraining or dropping of the abrasive which may become lodged. in the' 'angles and thus reduces inactive abrasive.

Themachine in the form shown is equipped.' with fourup-blast blasting units so designed'thatr each unit with its motor drive is self-contained.

andprotected from abrasion and is adjustable through a distance at righttangles to the direo. tion of movement ofthe skelp strip. Theseiunits are.mounted,-.two on eachxside of. the cabinet. and may be easily removed and replaced with a spare unit incase of breakdown.-

Since the' several 'blast'units are substantially alike, it is sufficient to describeone in detail; Each unit (Figs; 3 and 4)comprises a platform oraframe 511 having suitablecbearingsifor sup-.. porting flanged wheels '58. The flanged wheels 58 =run .on tracks 59..supported by .I-beams. The' platform 51. supports anelectric motor fillrwhich. drives the blast wheel through: a belt 6|, the blast: wheel being mounted on a separate shaft 69.11

The motor60. is protected by. a shroud 62c arched'over the topof the'unit and having sides' 63 suitably secured to the platform 51. The. shroud 62 hasan endwalLBl'through which the. blastwheel projects. The blast wheel is :located' between the endwall-M: and an outer end wall; 65through which the funnel pipe fifi'proiects for: feeding the center ofthe .blast wheel with abrasive, as will beunderstood by thoseskilled' in the art. The funnel pipe, 66 has-.a funnel-shaped opening G'Lfedby a flexible depending hose 68 which .is removable-from .the'funnel. fil-whemther blast unit is removed from the machine. The curved hood 62 has tight fit with the respective side walls 2| or 22 of the cabinet to prevent exit of dust and abrasive.

The several blast units are each removable from the machine, as a unit, by being rolled out on tracks 59 through the wall which the shroud 62 engages, that is, the wall opposite to the particular blast wheel (see arrows A, B, C, D). For this purpose the tracks for each unit may be extended laterally. If desired, only one set of extension tracks may be provided for all units, shiftable to the particular unit by an overhead crane (not shown) for removing any particular unit.

The unit I6 is indicated diagrammatically in Fig. 4 in removed position on extension tracks 10. This figure also illustrates the crane sling hooks 12, of which there are four for each car, two on each side, and by which the unit may be lifted by an overhead crane (not shown).

For closely adjusting the position of any blast unit, an adjustable screw is provided and for holding the blast unit in adjusted position, eccentric clamps are provided.

The adjusting screw comprises a screw threaded housing (Fig. 4) rigidly mounted on two channels 13 forming part of the stationary framework of the cabinet. Mounted on the underside of the unit car are bearings which journal the screw 16. The screw has a shaft T1 with a non-circular end 7 8 for engagement by a suitable wrench (not shown) for turning the screw 16. The screw 15 engages housing iii to adjust the car.

The blast unit clamping device comprises channel-shaped clamps 80, one or more on each side of the unit. Each clamp is mounted upon an eccentric cam 81 and the clamps have hooks 82 which engage over the lower flanges of the channel irons 14 forming part of the frame of the car. The eccentric 8| is mounted upon a shaft 83 suitably journaled in bearings 84 attached to the supporting track I-beams, which shaft has a handle 85 projecting out through the wall of the cabinet. By rotating the handle, the eccentric clamps 80 may be tightened to clamp or unclamp the channel irons 14 to hold the car in position or to permit its removal.

It will be understood that the screw jacks l5, 76 are used to locate the car with its blast wheel in proper position with respect to the margin of the skelp strip it is desired to clean and is not intended to hold the cleaning unit in position. The eccentric clamps 80, on each side, fixedly hold the unit in position after it has been properly located by the screw jacks. Suitable gear and ratchet locks (not shown) may be provided for holding the eccentrics 81 in locked position.

It will be understood that the manner of feeding and circulating the abrasive may be similar to those now in use. The spent abrasive, after striking the work, falls down through the grating floor 26 into the several hoppers 21, 28. Each hopper may have its own complete circulating equipment including an elevator for elevating the abrasive; a separator for cleaning and sizing the abrasive; an overhead storage hopper H; and feed pipe 68 extending from the storage hopper to the funnels 6'! of the two blast units forming part of their particular circulatory system.

To prevent accidental acquisition of abrasive by one particular circulatory system at the expense of the other, cross-feed pipes 90 are provided. Each pipe connects a storage hopper H of one circulatory system to the receiving hopper 21 or 28 of the other system. This pipe is connected to such a point on the abrasive storage bin II that, when the abrasive in the storage bin builds above the level at which this equalizing pipe connects, the excess abrasive will flow down this pipe into the other circulatory system.

Thus blasting and cleaning equipment is provided, which will efficiently clean the margins of skelp at a high rate of speed, depending upon thenumber of pairs of blasting units. Each blasting unit is adjustable for different widths of stock and is removable for inspection, replacement and repair. Each unit is completely protected against flying abrasive and the unit is.

sealed with the cabinet at the points of removal. The clapboard or shingle type lining for roof and side walls effectively withstands wear due to flying abrasive and is easily removable and replaceable by simply unhooking each plate and replacing it with a new one. The central skid effectively guides the skelp through the machine, assisted by the adjustable manganese steel side guides which can handle difierent widths of stock. The special exit vestibule insures removal of any abrasive which might accidentally remain on the work, thus insuring that the abrasive will not be carried with the stock into further processing rolls.

While certain novel features of the invention have been disclosed herein, and are pointed out in the annexed claims, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In blast-treating apparatus, a cabinet having entrance and exit walls, a path for continuous strip or sheet stock including a central rail or skid extending substantially from entrance to exit, side guides having recesses to receive the edges of said strip, said side guides being laterally spaced from said central rail or skid, said side guides bein spaced longitudinally from each other, whereby to expose said strip to the blast, and means for blasting said strip.

2. In an abrading apparatus, a cabinet having a roof, longitudinal side walls, an entrance end wall and an exit end wall, curtains in the entrance and exit end walls to seal openings for passage of strip or sheet stock, a path for the strip stock including a central rail or skid extending substantially from entrance opening to exit opening, cross bars below the level of said skid, U-shaped side guides adjustable on said cross bars receiving the edges of said strip, and means for abrading said strip.

3. In a cleaning apparatus, a cabinet having a roof, longitudinal side walls, a path to carry a strip through the machine, a blast unit comprising a car, a blast wheel journaled on said car, a motor on said car and driving said blast wheel,

tracks for said car extending transversely of the awe-um journ'aled en 'said car, a motor drlwng said blast wheel, tracks tor said oars. extending transversely of the length of said cabinet, means for adjust-@- ing said units on saidtracksto locate the blast wheels in proper relation to the marg-in =of-ttle skelp strip, and means for clamping :said remov able units in adjusted position, said. nnitsibeing.

removable through side walls remote. from .the

blast: wheels, eachunit havingia shroudsurs rounding the :motoraznd :blastwheelshaft, said hroud fitting theadjacent longitudinal side wall, and being open to the outside ofl theeabinetLv 5. In blasting apparatus, :a vplurality of blast ing sets, each set comp-rising at least one blast-J in machine, a separatecirculatory system for.

each set for recovering spent blast material, transferring it to its storagetan-k and feeding it.

toits set, means connecting. said systems ate-con vey. excess blast material from oneusystem .toan other, and means for housing said blasting machines to contain flying blast material.

6. In blast apparatusgtwo blasting vsets, each setcomprising at least. one blasting machine,.a separate circulatory system for each .set, each system comprising a hopper under its set for re covering spent blast material, a storage tank above said set, elevating means transferring blast material from said hopper to said tank, feed means connecting said tank and its set, equalizer pipesconnected at predetermined points of thestorage tank of. each system with the hop-- per ofthewother. system, and mean .for housing said blasting machines to contain. flying .blast.

material.

GILBERT D. DIIL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

